Petrolia in Lambton County, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)
The Founding of Petrolia
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, August 12, 2014
1. The Founding of Petrolia Marker
Inscription.
The Founding of Petrolia. . Following the discovery of oil at Oil Springs in 1857 prospectors extended their search to the entire township of Enniskillen. At the site of Petrolia, which contained two small settlements with post offices named Durance and Ennis, a well was brought into production in 1860. The following year a small refinery was opened and the Durance post office renamed “Petrolea.” At first, eclipsed by Oil Springs, the community developed slowly. But in 1865-66 a series of discoveries culminating in the drilling of the King well established Petrolia as a major oil producing centre in Canada and its population soared from about 300 to some 2,300. Incorporated as the village of Petrolia in 1866, it became a town on January 1, 1874.
Following the discovery of oil at Oil Springs in 1857 prospectors extended their search to the entire township of Enniskillen. At the site of Petrolia, which contained two small settlements with post offices named Durance and Ennis, a well was brought into production in 1860. The following year a small refinery was opened and the Durance post office renamed “Petrolea.” At first, eclipsed by Oil Springs, the community developed slowly. But in 1865-66 a series of discoveries culminating in the drilling of the King well established Petrolia as a major oil producing centre in Canada and its population soared from about 300 to some 2,300. Incorporated as the village of Petrolia in 1866, it became a town on January 1, 1874.
Erected by Archaeological and Historic Sites Board, Ministry of Colleges and Universities.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical month for this entry is January 1846.
Location. 42° 52.881′ N, 82° 8.795′ W. Marker is in Petrolia, Ontario, in Lambton County. Marker is on Greenfield Street close to Petrolia Line, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 405 Greenfield Street, Petrolia ON N0N, Canada. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 3 other markers
Click or scan to see this page online
are within 13 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Victoria Hall (within shouting distance of this marker); Robert M. Nicol Library (within shouting distance of this marker); First Oil Wells in Canada (approx. 12.2 kilometers away).
Also see . . . Petrolia, Ontario - Wikipedia. Oil men from Petrolia travelled to the far reaches of the world (Gobi Desert, Arctic, Iran, Indonesia, USA, Australia, Russia, and over 80 other countries) teaching others how to find and extract crude oil. (Submitted on October 31, 2014, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.)
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, August 12, 2014
2. The Founding of Petrolia Marker
The marker is located on the far right. The building is Victoria Hall.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 31, 2014, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 589 times since then and 34 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on October 31, 2014, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
